Monday, January 12, 2009

The Future can begin

I have seen this movie several dozen times since the age of 16, and it just gets better every time. It does have a special place in my heart. And for this reason, I promised myself I will visit the filming locations.

Without no doubt, The Terminator is one of the best action movies in the 80's. It doesn't set a single foot wrong and it also kicked off a wonderful saga.

Without this, there would be no Terminator 2. This movie is fondly remembered by many people and it has been the subject of many quotes and spoofs over the years.

Why doesn't it set a foot wrong? It is thrilling, almost always entertaining and filled with insane explosions, which more or less makes a good action movie.

But 'The Terminator' stands head and shoulders above the rest of it's genre, because of it's well thought-out plot, splendid acting and an eerily memorable music score which gives you a reason to watch the credits at the end.

The opening scene starts at the Griffith Observatory.Exactly at the same spot where they shot James Dean classic movie : Rebel without a causeI would not be surprise James Cameron did on purpose to choose this spot.

The Terminator is looking for the phone booth (14329 Victory Boulevard at Tyrone Avenue, Van Nuys). Interesting thing to note is that the Alamo gun store is located at the same address. The same sidewalk. The wood paneling inside is gone. But the entrance door is the same. The funny thing is that the owner did not know his store was used in Terminator. I gave him the photos from the movie when I left. He was very happy.

Sarah Connor's restaurant (Big Jeff-852 Fremont Ave, South Pasadena, CA) is now Carrows . The place has been remodeled inside. But from the outside, it is fairly recognizable. The tree where Sarah Connor attached her motorbike is still there. they did not let me shot inside because of private property...blah blah blah...the manager was not friendly at all. I stole some shots before he jumped on me and asked me to turn off the camcorder.He wanted to call the cops but i told him i was a tourist from France and i did not know the laws...he let me go...the total jerk!. Anyway the place inside was different from the movie. But you can still recognize the same tiles on the kitchen walls.

Reese materializes in the alley between W6th and W7th street. I shot the alley by night as well. When filming I could see rats in the trash can. The Alley is closed at night. Downtown L.A is definitely not a place for tourists. All the car chase scenes was shot in the same alley. In fact, i realized the entire movie was shot between these 2 blocks . I understand why James Cameron chose downtown L.A. The place is dead at night. No traffic.

The Technoir is now a jewelry store (718 S Hill St, Los Angeles, CA). The street at night is completely deserted. No more night club around. Without the photo below taken on the set with Reese walking on the street, it would have been impossible to find the location.

Department of Water parking (830 W 1st St, Los Angeles, CA) is private. You cannot park inside. I took shots of the entrance. It looks like as any parking.

Tikki Motel (7301 Santa Fe Ave, Huntington Park, CA 90255) There were no sign stating Terminator was filmed there. Well, this is a crappy motel. It was pretty much empty. Even as a big fan of the movie, I will never spend the night .This place is depressing. They replaced the sign on top of the motel and the one in the street. The manager was friendly and let me visit Room#9.

The gas station spot is located on a desolated area in Littlerock, small town in Sun Valley. It takes one hour to drive there from L.A downtown. The place is surrounded by Joshua trees as you see in the movie. Nothing much to say about this spot. The gas station was probably a set. The mountains in the background are recognizable.

9 comments:

I just wanted to compliment you for the quality of the video and research you did. It's kind of arcane stuff (even by the obsessive standards of huge movie fans, like myself), but it's also really great work.

Great stuff!I visited a lot of these locations myself. I have one more to add to your collection -- the location of the spot where the truck runs over the Terminator and then he steals the truck and tries to run over Sarah.

The Alamo Gun store was a working shop when the Terminator was filmed. I still have a pistol case I bought there. They were affiliated with the taxidermy shop you can see as Arnie enters the Alamo. The auto dealer has left and it was empty the last time I drove by ten years ago.

nstrThe gas station is a real place, although it looks a bit different now. I blogged about it here. :)http://www.iamnotastalker.com/2011/01/28/the-crossroads-gas-station/I cannot believe the manager of Carrows wouldn't let you take pics. So not cool! :(

The Carrows restaurant in South Pasadena would have been a Bob's Big Boy at the time of filming. Hence the name Big Jeff's. The Sarah called the statue Big Buns instead of Big Boy. She asked the customer "Who gets the Burly Beef?" a reference to one of Bob's menu items at the time, The Brawny Beef.